Native Plants of Aotearoa | Carlos Lehnebach, Heidi Meudt

Part of the new Te Papa Te Taiao Nature Series, this accessible, handsomely illustrated guide to the commonly encountered native plant species of Aotearoa New Zealand has wide appeal. Native Plants of Aotearoa describes and beautifully illustrates fifty of our most interesting and commonly encountered species. Written by Te Papa botanists, it includes useful descriptions on each species and insights into the museum’s fieldwork and collections. The illustrations are from Te Papa’s collections, based on sketches from fresh plant specimens collected by botanists Joseph Banks and Daniel Solander on board HMS Endeavour during the 1786–71 expedition. Each book in this lightweight, hardback series – designed by award-winning designer Tim Denee – has a crisp look and feel, ideal for pocketing for tramps, or for using at home.

Dr Carlos Lehnebach (Te Papa Curator Botany) studies the diversity, evolution and conservation of New Zealand flowering plants. His main groups of interest are terrestrial and epiphytic orchids, alpine plants, and plants shared with other land masses in the Southern Hemisphere. Dr Heidi Meudt (Te Papa Curator Botany) is a researcher whose collections-based research focuses on the evolution and classification of native New Zealand flowering plants, especially forget-me-nots. Her research aims to update the taxonomy and conservation status of all native forget-me-nots.